5 signs you can add value through remodelling or renovation

Do you purchase property with one eye on adding value and potentially selling on for a profit? If so, you may be wondering whether that’s still achievable in 2025. 

With the cost of labour and materials making many extension projects unaffordable, home buyers are looking for fresh ways of adding value. The good news is there are still ways to enhance a property and improve both its value and appeal, all while making the numbers add up. Here are 5 aspects to look for when buying a property this year:

1. Rotten or removed original features: it can be soul destroying to see a period home stripped bare and put on the market but that presents the buyer with a new opportunity. Homes that have original features are coveted and carry a price premium thanks to their unique character, so replacing and repairing is a great strategy to add value. In fact, Checkatrade.com reports restoring original features could add up to 30% to a property's value.

There are some brilliant reclamation yards full of authentic architectural elements saved from heritage buildings – think fireplaces, tiles, cornicing, ceiling roses, banisters and stained glass. Damaged details can also be repaired by specialist companies, who undertake full restorations.

2. A series of small ground floor rooms: the fashion for small, closed-in rooms has passed and families, especially, crave light, connected open plan living. If there is a separate lounge, a separate dining room and a separate kitchen, there may be the possibility of removing internal walls to connect the spaces.

The buyer would need to take the advice of an architect or builder to establish what’s possible. If the property is listed, the remodelling scope may be limited. Major structural work may also need the installation of steel joists and building regulations approval.

3. A dated or dilapidated exterior: kerb appeal is intrinsic to a home’s value, with property company Stacks claiming a shabby, unkempt exterior can cheapen a home by as much as 20%. It’s therefore possible to purchase a home that’s not so spic and span on the outside and add value by sprucing up the façade. 

The biggest impact will come from removing exterior treatments that have fallen out of fashion or that are damaged, such as stone cladding, pebble dash and low-grade render. Value will be added if you expose the original brick and have it repointed. Less intensive changes that will boost appeal and value will be to improve the front garden landscaping, replace rotten window frames and give any plasterwork a fresh coat of paint.

4. Oversized bedrooms: unlike our European and American counterparts, we tend to value our homes by how bedrooms there are, not by its square metreage. Simply put, the more bedrooms in a property, the more valuable it is.

Value can be added by dividing one generous bedroom into two more modest size rooms by installing a stud partition. While most projects involving a stud partition don’t need building regulations approval, there are fire safety, spacing, thickness and acoustic regulations. There will also be minimum size requirements if you offer the property as a house in multiple occupation (HMO) or as social housing. 

5. One bathroom: our bathroom expectations have changed beyond belief. Gone are tin baths and outside toilets and in are en suites, oversize shower cubicles and an improved ‘bathroom to occupant’ ratio.  

When it comes to value, the more bathrooms the better. If a large bedroom isn’t quite big enough to split into two rooms, you could consider apportioning some of the space to create an en suite. Adding a cloakroom to the ground floor is also a smart move – check the potential for creating one under the stairs or by commandeering a large cupboard.

Many of the homes we sell come with remodelling or renovation potential. If this appeals, let us know and we will book viewings at suitable properties.